Curl up with a good [children's] book

As a horticulturist, this time of year is always a little rough for me.  My vegetable garden is naked--except for a few brave kale and chard plants, the hoses have been drained and coiled up, and the gardening tools will hang in the garage untouched until spring.  Today the high was around 16 degrees, and it was painful to be outdoors.  But, my little troupe and I kept cheery around the house; we made a pumpkin pie, we did art projects, we read a stack of lovely children's books.  

One of my back-burner dreams is to write and/or illustrate a children's book. I have tried twice and been rejected twice.  It seems to be one of those harder to reach dreams, but not so hard that I don't keep it on my list.  I am continually amazed by those exceptionally talented, creative, determined authors and illustrators who do have their work published.  Reading children's books is one of my personal delights; I think sometimes I get more excited about trips to the library then my kids do.  So, to bring a little cheer on a nasty, cold November night, I will share some recent finds in the world of children's literature:

The Story Blanket, written by Ferida Wolff and Harriet May Savitz and illustrated by Elena Odriozola is one of my new favorites.  It has gorgeous pictures that are full of character and vibrant color.  The illustrator has such a unique style that the first time I opened the book, I studied every illustration in detail before I even considered the text.  The story is one that needs to be read again and again.  It is a sweet, simple tale of kindness, service, and love.  This book teaches wonderful virtues through the secret acts of a beloved villlage woman.  The main character, Babba Zarrah, is a perfect heroine for children--and adults.    I love this book.


Hooray for Hat, created by Brian Won, is an all-together different kind of book.  It's light and lovely approach has a straightforward message: friends are wonderful!  This is a such a great read-aloud book, too, with opportunity to use different voices for the various characters.  And, of course, the illustrations are engaging.  I'll be honest, I usually do judge a book by its cover, and this one caught my eye.  Ezra was especially fond of this one too; we read it again and again.


This board book series for baby-2 years is hilarious.  Leslie Patricelli is a genius at communicating a concept with minimal words (usually just one or two words a page) and the antics of a happy bald baby.  This is one of those books that makes the entire family giggle.  Her books are happy, frank, and great fun.  Some of her other book titles include: Quiet Loud, Yummy Yucky, No No Yes Yes, Toot, and Huggy Kissy.  If you need a little comic relief,--baby style--check these out.  I think they are delightful.


This book is, without a doubt, Ezra's all-time favorite.  We have checked it out from the library on at least four different occasions.  He requests it as a read-aloud every night we have it on loan.  He has parts of the text memorized, and uses the story line in his imaginative play.  If you have a little boy, chances are, he will adore this story.  I love it too.  In fact, I am a huge fan of anything that Tom Lichtenheld does.  In this book he is just the illustrator, but he has written and illustrated many others for children.  His style of writing and illustrating, is, in my humble opinion, a winning combination of wit, creativity, and passion.  I think this man loves his job.  Some of my other favorite Tom Lichtenheld books are: Cloudette, Duck! Rabbit!, Yes Day, and Bridget's Beret (...to name a few....he has an impressive collection...his creativity runneth over).